35 West

On March 23, newly minted Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney called snap elections for April 28, kicking off a 37-day sprint campaign to determine Canada’s future at a critical moment. The race puts incumbent Prime Minister Carney—who assumed leadership of the Liberal Party following Justin Trudeau’s resignation as prime minister—, head-to-head with Pierre Poilievre, leader of the Conservative Party. Regardless of who comes out on top, the next leader of Canada will inherit a tense relationship with the United States, public pressure at home to revive Canada's economy, and an increasingly fraught global security environment that tests Canada’s sovereignty.

In this episode, Christopher Hernandez-Roy sits down with Paul Wells, a veteran journalist and author on Canadian politics and public affairs. Together, they discuss the key issues framing this election, the reasons for the Liberal Party's surge in the polls, and how the next Canadian leader will approach an increasingly fraught relationship with the United States.

On February 9th, Ecuadorians headed to the polls for the first round of presidential elections. While there was little surprise about who the two frontrunners would be, the results turned out to be much tighter than many polls had predicted. Incumbent President Daniel Noboa led with 44.17 percent, just ahead of Luisa González of the Revolución Ciudadana party who garnered 44 percent. The narrow margin revealed the nation’s deep polarization, setting the stage for a second electoral round on April 13 that promises to be a close showdown.

In this episode, Ryan C. Berg sits down with Will Freeman, Fellow for Latin America Studies at the Council on Foreign Relations. Together, they discussed the key challenges Ecuador faces in the security and economic space that have defined the race. How both candidates are seeking to appeal to undecided voters, and what the outcome will mean for U.S.-Ecuador relations at a fraught moment in global politics.

Climate change and the reduction in sea ice is opening new shipping routes, and making it easier to tap the arctic’s natural resource wealth, especially critical minerals. For Canada, a country where the arctic represents 40 percent of its territory and 75 percent of its coastline, the changing arctic presents new challenges and opportunities. However, Canada’s sovereignty over its vast arctic territory is exercised by only a very small military presence on land and occasionally at sea.

In this episode, Christopher Hernandez-Roy sits down with Vincent Rigby, senior adviser with the CSIS Americas Program and professor at the Max Bell School of Public Policy at McGill University. Together, they discuss Canada's current force posture in the arctic and priorities for bolstering Canadian sovereignty there. They also examine current U.S.-Canada tensions, and how Ottawa can manage these without sacrificing the need for cooperation and interoperability with the United States to tackle threats in and through the arctic.

As one of his first actions in office, U.S. president Donald Trump ordered a 90-day freeze on foreign assistance pending review for alignment with U.S. foreign policy goals. Subsequent moves by the administration, including the aggressive downsizing and de facto elimination of the U.S. Agency for International Development have roiled Washington and resulted in far-reaching implications. Within the Western Hemisphere, the Andean region, particularly Colombia, stands to be one of the areas most impacted by these funding freezes.

In this episode, Ryan C. Berg sits down with Elizabeth Dickinson, Senior Analyst for the Andes at Crisis Group. Together, they discuss how the cutoff of U.S. assistance is impacting security and counter-narcotics efforts in Colombia. They also explore the openings that the end of U.S. assistance creates for other powers to enter the security assistance space, particularly the European Union and China.

Gunfire on Haitian airports and an assault on the largest public hospital show that even the country’s critical infrastructure is not immune to gang violence. Massacres in November and December, claiming over 350 lives, prompted many aid organizations to pull up stakes. While the announcement of elections scheduled for mid-November this year sparked a glimmer of hope, past postponements, the deepening security crisis and the suspension of U.S. assistance to the Multinational Security Support Mission, cast doubts on whether they will ever materialize.

In this episode, Christopher Hernandez-Roy sits down with Georges Fauriol, Senior Associate with the CSIS Americas Program and fellow with the Caribbean Policy Consortium. Together, they discuss recent political developments with the Haitian provisional government, and the future of the embattled MSS force. They also explore how the Trump administration will approach Haiti policy and the question of international security assistance.

On Sunday, Ecuadorians will return to the polls for the second time in less than two years to elect a new president. Incumbent Daniel Noboa, who has governed for a mere 18 months since his predecessor Guillermo Lasso disbanded the national assembly and called snap elections in 2023, hopes to win a full term. He faces a crowded field of some 15 other candidates, most notably Luisa González, who narrowly lost to Noboa in 2023 and represents the powerful Citizen Revolution party in the legislature.

In this episode, Sebastián Hurtado, President and Founder of the Quito-based political risk consultancy Prófitas returns to 35 West to sit down with Ryan C. Berg. Together, they discuss President Noboa's legacy from his abbreviated first term, including the economic and security environment facing Ecuador as the election approaches. They also discuss the implications of the election for U.S.-Ecuador relations under the second Trump administration.

This episode of 35 West originally aired on June 20, 2024.

The global energy transition will require a simultaneous mining revolution. However, reaching the levels of production needed to achieve net zero goals is no small feat, while China’s dominance in the midstream of critical minerals supply chains presents risks to both the United States and minerals producers in the Western Hemisphere alike.

In this "Best of 35 West" episode, Christopher Hernandez-Roy sits down with Dr. Gustavo Lagos Cruz-Coke, Professor of Engineering and Mines at the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile. Together, they unpack the challenges and opportunities facing the mining industry in Latin America and the view from Chile towards China's expansion in this strategic sector. They also discuss the role of U.S. efforts to reorient mineral supply chains through the Inflation Reduction Act and Minerals Security Partnership, and why such policies have yet to gain significant traction in the region. 

In early December, the European Union and Southern Common Market, better known as Mercosur, reached an agreement on a trade deal. This announcement represented the culmination of more than two decades of negotiations between the EU and Mercosur countries, which had progressed off and on since 1999.

In this episode, Ryan C. Berg sits down with Lauri Tähtinen, a non-resident senior associate with CSIS. Together, they discuss the history of the agreement and why it has finally come to fruition, as well as some of the remaining disputes that could continue to threaten the deal. They also discuss the geopolitical implications, particularly with respect to China and the new U.S. administration, of what will be the largest free trade area in the world.

The re-election of President Donald Trump has sent reverberations throughout Mexico and Canada, the United States’ closest neighbors and largest trading partners. Of particular concern is Trump’s threat to impose tariffs on Canadian and Mexican exports into the United States, a threat which will undoubtedly color U.S. relations with its two neighbors and provides an insight into the likely directions of a Trump administration trade policy, which will emphasize striking an accord on sensitive issues like trade deficits, migration and border security, and defense. 

In this episode, Christopher Hernandez-Roy sits down with Dr. Meredith Lilly, Professor and Simon Reisman Chair in International Economic Policy at Carleton University and former Foreign Affairs and International Trade Advisor to Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper. Together, they discuss the state of U.S.-Canada relations and how they are likely to evolve under the Trump administration. They also delve into the ways North America as a whole may be impacted, and the future of the U.S.-Mexico-Canada free trade agreement which Trump helped negotiate in his first term.

This episode of 35 West originally aired on May 16, 2024. Following recent announcements that the incoming Trump Administration would consider tariffs on Mexico and Canada unless the two countries act to stop the flow of illegal drugs and irregular migration, many of the topics discussed have only grown in relevance.

In 2023, U.S. trade with Mexico grew to nearly $800 billion, leading Mexico to surpass both Canada and China as the United States’ number one trading partner. While U.S.-Mexico trade has long been a pillar of North American economic competitiveness, Washington’s efforts to move trade away from China in favor of nearshoring and friendshoring in the Western Hemisphere, coupled with the advantages of a modernized trade agreement in the form of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) has underpinned this increase in bilateral trade and investment. At the same time, Chinese investment in Mexico has skyrocketed, with estimates finding that in 2022 Chinese foreign direct investment in Mexico was more than double that of 2018.

In this episode, Christopher Hernandez-Roy sits down with Kenneth Smith Ramos, Chief Trade Negotiator for Mexico from 2017 to 2018 and one of the architects of USMCA. Together, they discuss the evolution of USMCA since its entry into force in 2020, with a focus on the recent surge of Chinese investment in Mexico, understanding the nature of this investment, as well as the potential challenges it may present. They also discuss the upcoming 2026 Joint Review of the agreement, and what can be done by all three countries to lay the groundwork for a more constructive session.